Vinegar & Honey
by ptdf
Summary: "Why are you doing this?" Ginny whispered from the tiny corner of her mind that was still her own. "I was trapped in that cursed diary for fifty years," Tom replied, smiling with her lips. "I have things to do."
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

"Ginny!" Harry muttered, sprinting to her and dropping to his knees. "Ginny, don't be dead, please don't be dead..."

Something huge hit the stone floor of the Chamber. _The basilisk!_ Harry realized, shutting his eyes. He should have been terrified, but the eerie music filling the hall swelled up inside him, unlike any birdsong he had heard before.

#

The basilisk keeled over sideways and fell, twitching, to the floor.

A faint moan came from the end of the Chamber: Ginny was stirring. Her bemused eyes traveled from the huge form of the dead basilisk, over to Harry, in his blood-soaked robes. She drew a great, shuddering gasp and tears began to pour down her face.

"Harry, oh, Harry, what happened? How did we get here?"

"It's all right," said Harry, holding up the bloody sword. "The basilisk is finished. "C'mon, let's get out of here."

#

"You have no recollection of your kidnapper?" Dumbledore asked gently in McGonagall's office.

"I'm sorry, Headmaster," said Ginny, tearing up. "I remember being in my room, and then…"

Dumbledore raised her chin and gazed into her eyes, piercing blue on hazel. "Miss Weasley should go up to the hospital wing right away. Bed rest and perhaps a large, steaming mug of hot chocolate. I always find that cheers me up."

"But what of the Heir?" said McGonagall.

"What's to stop another attack?" said Mrs. Weasley.

"The Auror Office will investigate," said Dumbledore. "Without their pet monster, however, I suspect the Heir will have gone into hiding."

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley followed Ginny out of the office as if they would never again let go.

 _Why are you doing this?_ Ginny whispered from the tiny corner of her mind that was still her own.

 _I was trapped in that cursed diary for fifty years_ , Tom replied, smiling with her lips. _I have things to do._

#

Tom watched the countryside roll by the train track, oblivious to the yelping and laughter of Harry, Hermione and the Weasleys playing exploding snap. He couldn't get enough of the open sky.

 _Why are you keeping me awake this time?_ asked Ginny.

 _You're more useful this way,_ said Tom.

 _I´ll never help you,_ said Ginny.

 _We'll see,_ said Tom.

"C'mon, Ginny, just one round," said Fred. Or was it George? Would the girl be expected to tell them apart?

 _Yes I would_ , Ginny interrupted in his mind. _And I won't tell you._

 _Stay out of my head_ , said Tom.

 _Stay out of my body!_ cried Ginny.

"Don't worry, I'm sure there aren't any basilisks out there waiting to jump us," said the the other twin.

"And even if there are," said maybe-Fred, "Harry here can always pull a magic sword…"

"...or magic machine gun…" added George.

"...out of thin air," concluded Fred.

"Don't be asses," said Hermione. "Give her time."

"We _have_ given her time," Ron whispered not very discreetly. "Harry's fine, but she's been like this ever since…"

"Harry doesn't have the sense to understand how lucky they were," said Hermione.

"Hey!" said Harry.

"People deal in different ways," said Hermione, turning back to Ginny. "My parents know a counselor, if you'd like to try."

"Like a shrink?" said Ron. "She's not some crazy Muggle. I'm sure they can brew something up at St. Mungo's."

"Wizards are still human," said Hermione. "Unless you want to erase their memory, you can't just magically make someone better, any more than you can conjure food or real love."

"Ginny," said Harry, trying to change the subject. "What did you see Percy doing, that he didn't want you to tell anyone?"

 _What was it?_ Tom demanded.

 _Wouldn't you like to know_ , said Ginny. _They're already suspicious. Pretty soon…_

 _Legilimens_ , Tom said simply.

 _They were at Flourish and Blotts. That fool Lockhart was being cheered by a gaggle of witches of all ages. Ginny stood in the corner, trying to be invisible in her second-hand robes._

Nice rags, _said Tom._

 _Ginny didn't answer._

 _Harry emerged from the crowd. "You have these," he mumbled, tipping a pile of books into her cauldron._

" _Bet you loved that, didn't you, Potter?" said a sneering blonde boy. "_ Famous _Harry Potter. Can't even go into a_ bookshop _without making the front page."_

 _Tom was surprised by the heat of Ginny's fury._

" _Leave him alone, he didn't want all that!" Ginny erupted._

" _Potter, you've got yourself a_ girlfriend _!" drawled the boy._

" _Oh, it's you," said Ron, pushing through the crowd. "Bet you're surprised to see Harry here, eh?"_

" _Not as surprised as I am to see you in a shop, Weasley," said the boy. "I suppose your parents will go hungry for a month to pay for all those."_

 _The memory faded._

I hate Malfoy _, said Ginny_.

 _They were in an empty classroom. Well, not quite empty: Percy was making out with a girl in the corner._

 _The door swung open and Ginny peered in. "Oh, I'm sorry, I was looking for… Percy?"_

" _Ginny!" cried Percy, jumping clear as if bitten. "We were just… I mean…"_

" _Smooching?" supplied Ginny, grinning._

 _Percy's angry retort faded with the memory._

"Hello, Earth to Ginny?" said Fred.

 _Who was the girl?_ Tom demanded. _I can dig for it if I have to._

Ginny hesitated.

"Percy's got a girlfriend," Tom said blandly. "I walked in on them kissing in an empty classroom one day. A Ravenclaw prefect. Penelope Clearwater."


	2. Diagon Alley

**2\. Diagon Alley**

Tom walked into Flourish and Blotts without noticing the copies of 'The Monster Book of Monsters' fighting in the iron cage.

 _I'm just saying,_ said Ginny, _for someone who has things to do, you sure did a whole lot of nothing over summer._

 _I was researching,_ said Tom.

 _So vacationing is research now?_ said Ginny.

 _Egyptian necromancy is decades ahead of anything we have in the Isles_ , said Tom. _And your command of basic hieroglyphics is atrocious_.

 _I'm twelve!_ cried Ginny.

 _Why, when I was your age…_ Tom didn't finish the thought.

 _Well, I have a different theory_ , said Ginny. _I think you're enjoying being a part of this family._

 _Ridiculous_ , said Tom. _You are tools, to be discarded when you are no longer useful._

 _Necromancy_ , said Ginny. _So you're a ghost?_

 _I am but ink and memory_ , said Tom. _And soon I won't need your bag of bones anymore._

 _If you wanna leave so bad, here's an idea: go back to your crummy diary!_ cried Ginny _. I'll even let you choose which toilet I flush it down this time. Or go possess somebody else._

 _The thought did cross my mind_ , said Tom. _But I've opted for a different approach._

 _Which is doing nothing,_ said Ginny. _You didn't even run away._

 _As Tom I have_ nothing, he said bitterly. _But I've started from nothing before. And thanks to you I have access to the one thing I need: Hogwarts._

"Hogwarts?" said the manager, as if reading his mind. Tom narrowed his eyes: _had_ he been reading his mind?

 _Now you're being paranoid_ , said Ginny.

 _If you'd been a little more paranoid, you wouldn't be possessed by a crummy diary_ , said Tom.

"Come to get your new books?" the manager asked warily, putting on very thick gloves.

"We're dirt-poor," said Tom. "I'm getting my brothers' books."

Ginny huffed.

"Thank heavens," said the manager, leaving rather quickly.

 _Perhaps a heftier body,_ said Tom, taking down a volume of 'Golems Galore!'.

 _Boys and muscles_ , scoffed Ginny. _You wouldn't fit through the door in that._

' _Emet_ ', _truth_ , said Tom, pointing to the word. _Erase the aleph and it becomes_ ' _met_ ', _death_.

 _I take it your Hebrew is as fluent as your ancient Egyptian?_

"Awesome, golems!" said Harry, reading over their shoulder. "Will we learn how to make them?"

"Not in the standard curriculum," said Tom. "But exceptional students tend to bend rules. Like practicing underage magic."

"Oh, you heard about that," Harry said sheepishly.

"I overheard Dad talking," said Tom. "I don't blame you, that horrible aunt of yours deserved it."

"I was wrong," said Harry. "I shouldn't have lost control."

" _Death Omens_ ," Tom read off the cover in Harry's arms. "Divination class?"

"What? Oh, no, just… perusing," said Harry, dropping it on the nearest shelf. "Is Ron here?"

"Should be at the Ice Cream Parlor with Hermione," said Tom.

"Cool," said Harry, "wanna come?"

"Thanks," said Tom, "think I'll _peruse_ a bit more."

"Okay," said Harry, "see you later then."

 _Why didn't you say yes?_ Ginny demanded as soon as Harry left.

 _Did you want to say yes?_ asked Tom. _You were too embarrassed to even speak in my head. He can't hear you, you know._

 _I don't know,_ said Ginny. _Have you never been in love? Wait, I'll answer that._ ' _Love is weakness, it has no place in the dark darkness of my being', right?_

Tom paused. _This is childish infatuation. You can't love someone you don't really know._

 _So you_ have _been in love?_ said Ginny.

 _No_ , said Tom.

 _How sad_ , said Ginny.

 _I'm trying to focus,_ said Tom, looking over the shelves.

 _How rude of me,_ sneered Ginny. _I wouldn't want to inconvenience you while you_ control my body _. And I know enough. I know he's brave, and good._

 _Mighty good of him to attack a defenseless muggle_ , said Tom. _That boy is in love with himself, thinks he'll save the world._

 _He defeated You-Know-Who_ , said Ginny. _Twice._

 _Even so you dare not speak his name_ , said Tom, smiling. _From what I gather his only merit is having had a mother who… who loved him._

 _So you're saying You-Know-Who isn't as clever as he thinks?_ said Ginny.

Tom hesitated. _I suppose he may have underestimated..._

 _He killed the basilisk,_ said Ginny. _Wait, killing is for garden snakes. He slew the hell out of that basilisk._

 _And what was his game plan going in?_ said Tom. _Hug the basilisk and hope it burned like Quirrel? If it hadn't been for a phoenix exploding out of thin air and pulling a magic sword from a hat - a very, very unlikely chain of events..._

 _Which he earned by being pure of heart,_ said Ginny. _Which is likelier, that he had exceptional luck every time, or that he actually has exceptional ability?_

 _Perhaps exceptional destiny_ , said Tom, tracing the Grim on the cover of _Death Omens_. _If prophecy is at work here..._

 _Are we getting paranoid again?_ said Ginny.

 _Maybe_ , said Tom. _But just because you're paranoid doesn't mean the universe isn't conspiring against you._ He replaced 'Golems Galore!' on the shelf. _This dump is useless. Let's go back._

 _Not like I have a choice_ , said Ginny.

#

They left the bookstore and dodged the brightly colored umbrellas outside the cafes.

"Hey, Sam, check-out the red-head," someone hissed.

"Oh honey," presumably-Sam replied, "1992 called, they want their ugly robes back."

 _Who said that?_ said Ginny.

None of the shoppers passing the Magical Menagerie were looking at them.

Tom paused at the shop window. ' _Viper bera' are assholes,_ he said. _Ignore them._

 _Viper be…_ said Ginny, spotting the cage with the small brown snakes. _I'm being bullied by snakes?_

 _You'll get over it,_ said Tom.

 _But I don't speak Snake..._ said Ginny.

 _Parseltongue, if you want to get technical_ , said Tom.

 _You're a Parselmouth!_ said Ginny.

 _Bingo_ , said Tom. _Just like Harry-freaking-Potter. Try not to swoon._

 _When I was little I'd daydream of finding a spell to talk to animals,_ said Ginny. _Why are they so mean?_

 _Most talking things are mean,_ said Tom. _And non-talking things would be too, if they could talk. Like diaries._

 _Hilarious_ , Ginny said dryly.

"Maybe we could have some ssnake ssoup tonight," Tom hissed out loud.

The snakes recoiled in surprise.

"Beg your pardon, misss," said the first. "Didn't mean no dissresspect."

"Mighty fine vintage robes you got there," said Sam the snake. "They ssay '92 is the new '93."

"Ssay, Ginny, who are you talking to?" Harry hissed unconsciously, arriving with Hermione, Ron, and a razzled Scabbers.

"Now it's a parssel-party," said the first snake.

"Hey, are you going to eat that?" asked Sam, looking pointedly at Scabbers.

"Harry," Tom said in English, annoyed. "We seem to be bumping into each other today."

"What were you talking to the snakes for, Harry?" asked Ron.

"Oh I wasn't…" said Harry confused.

Tom kept a neutral face.

"They seem to like your robes, Ginny," said Harry.

"Really?" said Tom. "That's nice of them. Well, I'll be on my way then. See you guys back at the Cauldron."


	3. The Hogwarts Express

**3\. The Hogwarts Express**

Tom and Harry waved at the Weasleys as the Hogwarts Express left the station.

"I need to talk to you," Harry muttered to Ron and Hermione.

"Go away, Ginny," said Ron.

"I'm coming too," said Tom, glaring at Harry.

Harry mulled it over. "She can come."

 _Wow_ , said Ginny. _Did you use_ imperio _?_

 _It's called confidence,_ said Tom, smirking. _It comes with the darkness._

 _I'd be rolling my eyes now if I could,_ said Ginny.

The only available compartment was at the very end of the train. The single occupant was a shabby man sitting fast asleep next to the window.

"Professor R. J. Lupin," whispered Hermione, pointing at the case on the luggage rack. "Must be the new DADA teacher."

"Hope he's up to it," Ron said doubtfully. "Anyway, what were you going to tell us?"

"I overheard your parents talking last night," said Harry. "Sirius Black broke out of Azkaban to kill me."

 _Oh, Harry!_ Ginny cried in unison with Hermione. _You have to say something, Tom_.

 _This doesn't affect my plans,_ said Tom. _I'll settle for a look of speechless horror._

 _How can you be this cold?_ said Ginny.

As the others reacted, a faint tinny sort of whistle was getting louder.

"It's coming from your trunk, Harry," said Ron, stepping over Tom to pull out a spinning, glowing, shrieking top. Tom bolted and pressed himself against the door.

"It's okay, it's just a cheap Sneakoscope," said Ron. "It went haywire when I was sending it to Harry."

"Stick it back in the trunk," said Harry, "or it'll it wake him up."

"Right," said Ron, burying it deeper in the clothing. "We could get it checked in Hogsmeade."

Tom sat as far as he could from Harry's trunk.

"Yeah, about that," said Harry. "The Dursley didn't sign my permission form, and Fudge wouldn't either."

"You're not allowed to come?" cried Ron.

"Ron," said Hermione, "I don't think Harry should be leaving school with Black on the loose…"

"I'll ask McGonagall," said Harry grimly. "If she says no, I'll just have to find some other way."

"Well, look who it is," said Malfoy, pulling open the compartment door. "I heard your father finally got his hands on some gold this summer, Weasley. Did your mother die of shock?"

Ron shot up but Tom was faster: " _Impedimenta."_

Malfoy froze at the door.

"Stop getting in my way," said Tom, pointing his wand. " _Cru…_ "

 _No!_ cried Ginny.

 _You said you hated him_ , said Tom.

 _Doesn't mean I want him tortured!_ said Ginny.

 _If you say so,_ said Tom, lowering his wand.

Lupin snorted.

"Who's that?" said Malfoy as the jinx wore off.

"New teacher," said Harry.

Malfoy looked at Tom. "We'll be watching you, Weasley." He left with Crabbe and Goyle.

"Nice job, Ginny!" said Harry, smiling.

"The _crucio_ bluff was brilliant," said Ron.

"You really shouldn't pick fights like that," said Hermione.

#

The rain thickened as the train sped north. The windows were dark when the train started to slow down.

"Great," said Ron, getting up. "I'm starving."

"We can't be there yet," said Hermione, checking her watch.

The train came to a stop with a jolt. All the lamps went out.

 _What's going on?_ said Ginny.

 _I don't know,_ said Tom, raising his wand. _Don't distract me._

"Keep calm," said a hoarse voice in the dark. Shivering light filled the compartment, radiating from the flames on Professor Lupin's palm.

The door slid slowly open to reveal a towering cloaked figure. It drew a long, slow breath, and the temperature dropped. The cold was inside his chest, inside his very heart…

Ginny cried out in his mind. _Dear Tom, I think I'm losing my memory. There are rooster feathers all over my robes and I don't know how they got there. I can't remember what I did the night of Halloween. There was another attack today and I don't know where I was. Tom, what am I going to do? I think I'm going mad. I think I'm the one attacking everyone, Tom!_

"None of us is hiding Sirius Black under our cloaks," roared Lupin, raising his wand at the dementor. "Go!"

Silver shot forth from the wand, and the creature glided away.

"Harry!" cried Hermione, slapping him where he lay on the floor.

"What happened?" asked Harry.

Everyone jumped as Lupin snapped off pieces of chocolate.

"Here," he said, passing them around. "Eat. If you'll excuse me, I need to speak to the driver."

 _What was that?_ Ginny asked weakly.

 _Dementor_ , said Tom, taking a big bite. _Chocolate helps._

 _It does,_ said Ginny, feeling the warmth return.

 _Am I really your worst memory?_ asked Tom.

Ginny paused. _Yes_.

Tom took another bite.

 _Why didn't it affect you?_ asked Ginny.

 _It feeds on happiness,_ said Tom.

 _I can't tell whether you're trying to be funny_ , said Ginny.

Tom kept chewing.

#

The train finally pulled into Hogsmeade station.

"Firs' years this way!" Hagrid hollered across the platform.

 _I wish we could take the boats again_ , Ginny said as they moved through the crowd. _You dream of Hogwarts all your life and then it's suddenly just there, windows sparkling with the stars in the sky and the lake… You'll think it's silly._

 _It's silly,_ said Tom. _And I know what you mean._

 _Maybe there's a little something for a dementor to gnaw on after all,_ said Ginny.

 _Very little_ , said Tom. _The stagecoaches are this way._

Students were piling into dozens of coaches on a rough mud track.

 _How do they move?_ asked Ginny. _Is it a charm?_

 _Pulled by thestrals,_ said Tom. _Ugly buggers._

 _You're pulling my leg,_ said Ginny _. There's nothing there._

 _They can only be seen by those who've seen death,_ said Tom.

 _Oh_ , said Ginny.


	4. The Restricted Section

**4\. The Restricted Section**

The next morning, Tom hauled his book bag to the library.

"Hey, Ginny," said Hermione, passing him by the entrance. "Gotta run, late for Arithmancy."

She didn't wait for an answer. Tom found an empty long table amid the carved wooden shelves and rummaged through his books.

"Hey, Ginny," someone called.

Tom looked up to see Hermione waving from the opposite end of the table, homework sprawling around her.

"Didn't I just see you leave for Arithmancy?" said Tom.

"Guess I turned back," said Hermione, smiling. "No way I could be two places at once, right?"

"I suppose," said Tom, returning to his books.

He found nothing in Budge's _Book of Potions_ , or Jigger's _Magical Drafts and Potions_ , or Tim's _Spell Potions._

 _They call this advanced?_ said Tom, pushing away Borage's 'Advanced Potion-Making'. _This is first-year stuff. A well-trained muggle could brew these in their kitchen!_

 _They might have trouble getting murtlap tentacle at the corner store_ , said Ginny. _Can they substitute octopus tentacle?_

 _You mock_ , said Tom. _But the sooner I have a body, the sooner we're free of each other._

 _Ask Hermione for help_ , said Ginny. _She's like way smarter than you_.

 _I don't know which of those statements to protest first,_ said Tom.

 _I realize it's a difficult concept for you_ , said Ginny. _But people sometimes help others, without having to be cursed or possessed into helping. You should try it sometime._

 _You think she's smarter than me?_ said Tom. _I was a prefect and a model student!_

 _Don't worry,_ said Ginny, _you definitely beat her in the ego department. Now ask her._

Tom fumed.

 _Skulking won't help_ , said Ginny.

 _I'll ask her, all right?_ said Tom.

 _Well do it while my body's still young,_ said Ginny.

"Hermione?" Tom squeaked.

"Yep?" said Hermione, peeking over a wall of books.

"Do you know any good regeneration potions?" Tom said casually.

"The Elixir of Life is reportedly really good," said Hermione. "But we're running short on Philosopher's Stones at the moment. Why?"

 _Good question_ , said Ginny.

"Um… it's for an assignment," said Tom. "Snape gave me extra work and said he'd take points from Gryffindor if I don't turn it in."

 _Good save,_ said Ginny.

"He can't do that," said Hermione. "We'll talk to McGonagall."

"Please," said Tom. "He'll find some other way to retaliate. Could you help me with the assignment? Ron is always going on about how clever you are."

 _That might be pushing it_ , said Ginny.

"He does, does he?" said Hermione, pleased. "Well then, I think I saw something like that in Bourne's _Moste Potente Potions_. But that's in the Restricted Section. You'll have to ask Snape for a permission slip."

"Thanks, Hermione," said Tom, gathering his things. "You're the best."

#

Snape wasn't in his office. Tom lugged his book bag up to the ground floor and knocked on the staffroom door. No one answered. He tried the doorknob.

"Hey sunny," said the stone gargoyle on the right, "you got an appointment or something?"

"I'm looking for Professor Snape," said Tom. "Is he in?"

"We are not at liberty to disclose that information," said the one on the left.

"I'll just check then," said Tom, reaching for the door.

"You can't," said the right, "we're guarding it."

"Course," said the left, "in these sensitive days we're not supposed to dismember trespassers anymore."

"So we riddle them instead," said the right.

"One of us only tells the truth," said the left. "And the other only lies."

"Wait," said the right, "that riddle requires two doors."

"Was that statement a lie?" asked the left.

Tom pushed through while they argued. The long, panelled room was deserted.

 _No Snape_ , said Ginny. _Let's go._

 _Aren't you curious?_ said Tom, walking around the mismatched wooden furniture.

 _About the kind of trouble we'll get into, you mean?_ said Ginny. _Not really._

The wardrobe at the end of the room gave a sudden wobble, banging off the wall.

 _How about now?_ said Tom.

 _Maybe a little,_ said Ginny.

 _Maybe Snape finally snapped_ , said Tom, walking towards it. _Tied up that new DADA teacher and threw him in the closet._

Tom swung the doors open and a corpse collapsed onto the floor - the face on the corpse was his own. His knees buckled. All his struggle had been for naught. He was dead, like a common muggle... Like his mother...

 _Do something, Tom!_ cried Ginny _._

Ginny's body shook violently.

Okay, looks like I'm back at the helm, thought Ginny, awkwardly trying her own limbs. The diary! Should be here somewhere…

Crack!

Ginny froze. The corpse was gone, in it's place lay the dreaded black book. She was losing control again. She would never be free…

"Riddikulus!" cried Snape, joining them.

Crack!

The diary was now pink, with a Hello Kitty on the cover.

Crack!

It was a corpse again, a woman with long auburn hair and empty green eyes. Ginny couldn't bear to look. Snape raised his wand, but no words left his mouth.

"Riddikulus!" someone cried, followed by the wardrobe doors slamming shut.

"Good thinking, Severus," said Professor Lupin, locking the wardrobe. "Not vanquishing the boggart. It will make great practice for the third-years. Are you alright, Ms. Weasley?"

"Yes, thank you," said Tom, retaking control.

"Well, then," said Lupin, heading out. "I'll go make arrangements."

 _What's a boggart?_ asked Ginny.

 _Shapeshifter,_ said Tom. _Takes the form of your worst fear._

 _Not a fan of dead bodies?_ said Ginny.

 _Not when they're me,_ said Tom. _Still having diary issues?_

 _You mean not being in control of my own body?_ said Ginny. _Yeah, I'd say that's still an issue_.

They realized Snape was on the floor beside them, shaking.

"Are you alright, Professor?" said Tom.

"Of course I am," huffed Snape, pulling himself to his feet. "What were you doing trespassing in the staffroom?"

 _I don't think he'll buy the extra assignment story,_ said Ginny.

"I was looking for you, Professor," said Tom. "I really want to do better in Potions this year. I read about this book in the Restricted Section…"

"You will start by doing detention," barked Snape. "I will discuss with your Head of House regarding additional punishment. Now get out!"

#

Tom retreated to the Gryffindor common room, defeated.

 _Now what?_ said Ginny.

 _I'll think of something_ , said Tom.

"Hey, Ginny," said Hermione, reading by the fire.

"Weren't you studying in the library?" asked Tom.

"Guess I came here," said Hermione. "There's no way I…"

"...could be in two places at once," said Tom. "Yeah, you mentioned."

"What's wrong?" asked Hermione.

"Snape got all worked up over a boggart," said Tom, "there's no way he'll give me permission to use the Restricted Section."

Hermione looked at him blankly.

"...for the assignment we talked about?" said Tom.

"Right, that one," Hermione said slowly. "I have an idea." She climbed the spiral staircase to the third year boys' room.

 _Not much of a memory,_ said Tom.

 _Must be all the knowledge crammed in there,_ said Ginny.

"Ready," said Hermione's voice. "Let's go."

Tom looked around. "Ventriloquy spell?"

"Better," said Hermione, parting thin air like a curtain that was black only on the inside. "Harry won't mind if we borrow it. Now come on."

 _Awesome!_ cried Ginny.

They walked to the library under the cloak, steering clear of other students. Madam Pince sniffed suspiciously as they passed, as if sensing mischief afoot. The Restricted Section definitely felt more foreboding than the rest of the library.

"Which book was it again?" said Hermione.

"Something about potent potions…" said Tom.

"Ah, Bourne," said Hermione, reaching for the bluish moss-covered tome. She held on when Tom made to take it. "You promise this is for research purposes only, and that you will not attempt any of these potions?"

"Promise," said Tom.

"Good," said Hermione, releasing the book. "Let's head back."


	5. Blood

**5\. Blood**

Tom rose reluctantly from breakfast and plodded into the cold, wet outside for double Herbology with the Hufflepuffs.

 _This is a waste of time_ , he said. _I should be working on the potion._

 _If you don't want your cover blown you need to go to class,_ said Ginny. _And you better get an Exceeds Expectations or better._

"Morning, chaps," said Professor Sprout, ushering them into greenhouse three. "We'll be repotting Mandrakes today. Can anyone tell me their properties?"

No one volunteered.

"I miss Ms. Granger," muttered Sprout. "Mandrake is a powerful restorative. It is used to return people who have been transfigured or cursed to their original state."

 _Before you ask, I don't think possession counts as a curse,_ said Tom.

 _Certainly feels like one,_ said Ginny.

"The cry of the Mandrake can be fatal," said Sprout, "so we'll be wearing earmuffs. I will first demonstrate, then you can get to work. Alright, earmuffs on."

 _These are really quiet_ , said Ginny.

 _Could be quieter,_ said Tom.

Sprout expertly pulled a baby Mandrake from its pot, kicking and screaming, and plunged into a larger pot, burying it in compost. She gave the class the thumbs-up to begin.

Tom struggled with his Mandrake as it squirmed and flailed.

 _You're doing it wrong_ , said Ginny. _Didn't you pass this class like a century ago?_

 _I was a school prefect,_ grunted Tom.

 _Yeah, you mentioned that_ , said Ginny. _Wait, don't hold it like that…_

 _I know what I'm doing… Hey!_ cried Tom, bumping into Colin and dislodging his own earmuffs. The terrible shrieking was unlike anything he had ever heard. A single thought crossed his mind before he blacked out: _not like this_.

#

Tom woke up in a strange bed.

"How are we feeling, Ms. Weasley?" asked Madam Pomfrey

"Not… dead?" Tom said slowly.

 _No thanks to your Herbology skills,_ spat Ginny. _Academic standards at Hogwarts must have really risen since your time._

"Goodness, no," said Pomfrey. "The Mandrakes were only seedlings, their cries only knocked you out for a few hours. But this is precisely why it is so important to follow proper safety protocols during…"

"Poppy!" cried Hagrid, barging into the hospital wing carrying a mess of robes. "It was an accident! Buckbeak didn't mean to…"  
"Put him on the bed and get out of the way," ordered Pomfrey, curtaining them off from Tom.

"I'm dying," the boy whined.

 _It's Malfoy,_ said Ginny.

 _Well good riddance,_ said Tom.

"You're not dying," said Pomfrey, "but that robe is ruined. _Diffindo_."

The bloody robe fell on the floor by the curtain.

"Let's see what we're looking at," said Pomfrey. " _Tergeo_."

Hagrid cringed as the blood was washed away from the wound.

"Any magic involved?" asked Pomfrey.

"Just a beautiful hippogriff," Hagrid sobbed.

"Good," said Pomfrey. " _Vulnera sanentur._ " She watched for a moment as the wound knitted. "This is healing nicely. I'll get some dittany to avoid scarring."

Tom eased himself to the floor and started folding the discarded robe.

 _What are you doing with that?_ hissed Ginny.

 _For the potion_ , said Tom.

 _Wait, that thing uses blood magic?_ said Ginny.

 _Well, I would prefer my new body come with blood_ , said Tom. _Getting it in later is a hassle. I once heard a story about this vampire…_

"What are you doing with that?" demanded Pansy Parkinson, storming into the room.

"Throwing it away, of course," said Tom. "Unless you want it as a keepsake?"

Pansy seemed conflicted, but gave up and ran to Malfoy's bedside.

#

Tom did better in the other classes. In Transfiguration, his beetle turned into fine black button with evil-looking spikes while the others were still creating gray smoke that smelled of rotten eggs.

"Well done, Weasley, if a tad unorthodox," said Professor McGonagall. "Ten points Gryffindor."

 _Suck it, Slytherin_ , said Ginny. _Is all your spellwork this heavy metal?_

Tom didn't deign to respond.

In Potions, Tom flowed smoothly around his steaming cauldron, carefully nursing his Swelling Solution.

 _You're pretty good at this_ , said Ginny. _Have you thought of being a chef?_

 _One of us is trying to work here_ , said Tom.

Professor Snape examined the cauldron with a sour face, but found nothing to criticize and moved on to bully Colin.

 _Can't believe you got through Potions without losing five points for some ridiculous reason_ , said Ginny.

 _Teachers just need to be managed,_ said Tom. _The secret is to…_

"Weasley," said Snape, creeping back. "Five points from Gryffindor for being cocky."

 _That's more like it,_ said Ginny.

In History of Magic, Tom dozed in the back while Professor Binns droned on about the International Warlock Convention of 1289.

The droning suddenly stopped. "Yes, Mr…"

"Creevey, sir," said Colin. "I was wondering if you could tell us anything about Sirius Black."

The class sat up at the name.

"My subject is History," Binns said dryly. "Not current affairs."

"Please, sir," said Colin. "Could you tell us of his role in the Wizarding War, then? Surely that is old enough to be historical?"

"Well, I suppose," said Binns. "It being _recent_ history, much is still unknown. You-Know-Who began his campaign against the Ministry in 1970…"

 _They say whatever's left of him is hardly human anymore_ , said Ginny.

 _I think he'd call it beyond human,_ said Tom.

 _Do you think he started out bad?_ asked Ginny. _Or did he turn bad?_

Tom didn't answer.


	6. Bone

**6\. Bone**

Tom walked briskly down the stone corridor.

 _I'm can't take any more detention,_ said Tom. _If I have to cut one more daisy root or skin one more shrivelfig..._

"Weasley?" Snape called in the distance. "Cauldrons won't clean themselves!"

 _I'm sure there's a charm for that,_ said Ginny.

 _At least I pilfered some ingredients,_ said Tom.

 _You still need somewhere to brew it_ , said Ginny. _The girls might get suspicious of a steaming cauldron in the dormitory._

 _I'm working on that_ , said Tom.

He rounded the corner and spotted Professor McGonagall coming from the opposite direction, lost in unpleasant thoughts.

 _We're not very popular with McGonagall right now_ , said Tom, turning back.

 _We're not very popular with Snape either,_ said Ginny.

 _Right,_ said Tom, stopping by the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy. _Now what?_

 _Quick, the door,_ said Ginny.

 _Was that there before_? said Tom, entering the room and listening behind the highly polished door.

"Minerva," Severus said in the hallway, "did the Weasley girl come this way? She hasn't finished her detention."

"Believe me, Severus," McGonagall said crossly, "she will fully serve her allotted detention. But I passed no one in the corridor."

"I thought I'd seen…" said Snape.

"Seeing as there are no other exits and I am not lying," said McGonagall, "it seems you were mistaken."

As Snape's and McGonagall's footsteps retreated, Tom looked about the room: pestles, beakers, cauldrons of every size... it was at least as well-equipped as the potions classroom for all your potion-brewing needs.

 _Wow,_ said Ginny. _Why would such a good lab go to waste?_

 _It seems hidden somehow,_ said Tom, smiling. _Snape and McGonagall couldn't see the door. We have a location. Now we just need a few ingredients and a short little trip._

 _That might be an issue, if you haven't noticed the life-sucking monsters floating around,_ said Ginny.

 _We'll find a way,_ said Tom. _Actually, I suspect someone else will find a way for us._

They came to a magnificent mirror, as high as the ceiling, with an ornate gold frame, standing on two clawed feet.

 _Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi_ , Ginny read off the inscription carved around the top. _What does it mean?_

 _You just released the demon trapped within,_ said Tom.

 _What?_ cried Ginny.

 _I have no idea,_ said Tom. _You should be more careful with magic objects you don't understand. Case in point._

 _The reflection's odd_ , said Ginny, looking at two young boys and a little redhead girl. _I don't know who…_ And then she did. _They're my children…_ She struggled for words. _I don't know their names, but they're my children. Do you see them?_

Tom paused. _I see myself, all powerful, immortal. All I ever wanted._

 _Then why are you crying?_ asked Ginny.

Tom wiped his face angrily. _Let's go._

#

Excitement had been building up ever since the notice board announced the first Hogsmeade weekend. On Halloween morning Tom bumped into Harry at the entrance hall, where Filch was checking students' names on the list.

"You don't seem too beat up about not going," said Tom.

"Oh, hey Ginny," said Harry. "I guess I'll have other chances. I'm sure it's no big deal."

"Right…" said Tom, studying him. Harry flushed. "I'll see you around then."

Harry turned up the marble staircase and down the third-floor corridor. He stopped by a statue of a hump-backed, one-eyed witch and looked around.

" _Dissendium_ ," whispered Harry, tapping the statue with his wand. He hoisted himself into the hole head first.

"Hey, Harry," Tom said brightly.

"Were you spying on me?" said Harry, startled.

"Of course," said Tom. "Shall we?"

"Second years aren't allowed in Hogsmeade," said Harry.

"Neither are you," said Tom.

Harry hesitated. "Fine, jump in."

They walked down an endless earthen passage and up worn stone steps into a dusty cellar. Navigating wooden crates and boxes, they climbed the stairs and found themselves behind the counter of Honeydukes, packed with students riding sugar rushes.

"I think I see Ron and Hermione," said Harry.

"Great," said Tom, moving to the exit. "See you guys back at the castle."

"Hey, where are you going?" asked Harry.

Tom smiled. "Out."

 _You didn't have to be rude_ , said Ginny.

 _I thought Hermione said you should play it cool_ , said Tom, moving to the alley behind the store. _He should be completely besotted by now._

 _Shut up_ , said Ginny.

 _Have you apparated before?_ said Tom.

 _Sure, with my parents,_ said Ginny. _Where are we..._

Crack!

#

Tom's feet slammed into the ground.

 _I'm going to be sick_ , said Ginny.

 _You don't have a body_ , said Tom.

 _It'll by psychic puke,_ said Ginny. _I'll try to get as much on you as I can._ She noticed the tombstones. _Why are we in a graveyard?_

 _Family visit_ , said Tom, walking up to a marble headstone.

 _Tom Riddle_ , Ginny read in the wandlight. _But you said you weren't a ghost._

"Hello, father," said Tom, raising his wand. "You gave me nothing in life. I have come to take in death."

The surface of the grave cracked. A small white bone rose into the air and fell softly onto Tom's outstretched palm. He slipped it into a pouch.

 _Now I'm really going to be sick_ , said Ginny.

 _We're done here_ , said Tom.

Crack!

#

Tom got back to Hogwarts barely in time for the Halloween feast. The Great Hall had been decorated with hundreds of candle-filled pumpkins and flaming orange streamers.

"What took you so long?" whispered Harry as Tom joined them at the Gryffindor table.

"It's not safe outside after dark," said Hermione. "There's dementors on patrol."

"Not to mention the crazy murderer they're patrolling for," said Ron.

"Is this about a boy?" said Hermione.

"What?" said Ron and Harry.

"Maybe," Tom said cryptically, tearing into the food.

 _What?_ said Ginny.

 _What did you want me to say?_ said Tom. _The truth?_

 _Actually, yes_ , said Ginny.

After the entertainment provided by the Hogwarts ghosts, Tom followed the Gryffindors back to the Tower. There was a commotion at the entrance.

"Somebody get Professor Dumbledore," said Percy. "Quick."

 _Oh no,_ said Ginny.

The Fat Lady had vanished from her portrait, which had been viciously slashed.

"Did she say who did it?" Dumbledore was demanding of Peeves.

"Oh yes, Professorhead," said the poltergeist. "He got very angry when she wouldn't let him in, you see. Nasty temper he's got, that Sirius Black."

All students were sent to sleep in the Great Hall while the teachers searched the castle.

 _Aren't you scared?_ said Ginny.

 _You heard Harry,_ said Tom. _He's the only one Black is after._

 _You're awful_ , said Ginny.

Tom stared at the enchanted ceiling scattered with stars.

#

Tom frowned at the downpour. _Why are we doing this again?_

 _It's what the real me would do_ , said Ginny. _People would get suspicious._

 _You just want to watch quidditch_ , said Tom, _while I get cold and wet_.

 _It will be nice and dry up here in your mind_ , said Ginny. _Trade you?_

 _I hate rain,_ said Tom. _I hate brooms. I hate..._

"Ready?" beamed Ron, opening the umbrella.

"You bet!" said Tom, squeezing out a smile.

They joined the other lunatics running down the lawns toward the field, heads bowed against the ferocious wind. The audience towers roared as the scarlet and yellow teams entered the field. At Madam Hooch's whistle the players shot into the air.

 _You belong in Gryffindor, where dwell the brave of heart!_ Ginny chanted with the rest of the crowd. _Their daring, nerve, and chivalry set Gryffindors apart!_

 _Must you scream that in my head?_ said Tom.

 _You should be screaming too, it's a quidditch match!_ said Ginny. _You'd enjoy enjoy it more if you knew the rules, should be easy for a model student. There's seven people in a team…_

 _I have had the rules explained to me more times than I care to count,_ said Tom. _What's the point, you can't see a thing in this rain_.

Ginny scanned the stormy sky. _Well, that's why we sing! You belong in Gryffindor…_

Rain fell and goals were scored until the crowd began roar.

 _What's going on, is it over?_ said Tom.

 _The seekers are diving_ , Ginny said excitedly. _They've spotted the snitch. Go Harry!_

A cold and eerie silence fell across the stadium.

 _Oh no,_ said Ginny, fading.

A hundred dementors stood on the field, staring up at the players.

 _Ginny?_ said Tom.

She didn't reply.

A Gryffindor fell and a Hufflepuff caught the snitch, but all eyes were on Dumbledore, shooting silver as he marched onto the field. The dementors dispersed.

"Harry!" cried Ron and Hermione, running off.

#

Tom arrived at the hospital wing.

 _Ready?_ he said.

 _Yes, hurry_ , said Ginny.

 _Ron said he's fine,_ said Tom. _Madam Pomfrey just kept him over the weekend as a precaution._

 _I know, I was there_ , said Ginny. _Now hurry_.

Tom opened the door. Harry was asleep on a bed by the window. The other beds were empty.

 _You have five minutes_ , said Tom. _Don't do anything stupid. Don't take off the gloves._

 _Wait,_ said Ginny, _what are you…_ For the first time since waking up in the Chamber, she was alone. Well, not counting the boggart incident. She realized she was wearing dark green satin gloves, questionable taste. What was the deal with the gloves? They were holding a get-well card, which reminded her where she was.

Ginny willed her own feet to move and approached the bed. He seemed to be sleeping peacefully. She brushed his unruly hair away, tracing the lightning scar on his forehead.

"Hey, Harry," she whispered. "That was quite a scare you gave us. There's so much I wanted to tell you. It's all my fault, those horrible things that happened last year. You were so brave, facing the basilisk."

She sat on the chair by the bed, her hand resting on his. "I wish I could be a hero like you. I don't know what I'm doing."


	7. Double Potions

**7\. Double Potions**

Tom jumped out of bed early on the last weekend of term. No more classes, no more homework: he could finally focus on the potion.

He was walking down the third-floor corridor when the Weasley twins stepped out of a classroom, smirking in a satisfied way.

 _That doesn't look suspicious at all_ , said Ginny.

Sure enough, Harry followed soon after, staring intently at a blank piece of parchment. He nearly jumped when he saw Tom.

"Hey, Ginny," he said, putting away the parchment. "Heading to Hogsmeade with the others?"

"Think I'll stick around the castle this time," said Tom.

"Oh, okay," said Harry, walking to the one-eyed witch. "See you later then."

Tom headed to the seventh floor and entered the hidden laboratory. He filled the large stone cauldron with water spouting from the gargoyle head and cast incendio on the firewood.

 _You seem more excited about the potion than about getting a body,_ said Ginny.

 _This is a very interesting potion_ , said Tom.

 _You almost look happy_ , said Ginny.

 _I wouldn't go that far_ , said Tom.

Tom opened the tome and started adding ingredients. The surface began to bubble and send out fiery sparks. He removed the bone from its pouch and cast _diffindo_ , shattering it in two. He raised his wand. "Bone of the father, unknowingly given, you will renew your son."

One of the fragments rose into the air and fell softly into the cauldron. The potion hissed and turned a vivid, poisonous-looking blue.

Tom picked up Malfoy's blood-crusted robes. "Blood of the enemy, forcibly taken, you will resurrect your foe." He ripped a strip and threw it in. The potion turned a burning red.

 _Are you still in?_ said Tom.

 _If this works, you'll let me go?_ Said Ginny.

 _Yes_ , said Tom.

 _Then I'm in_ , said Ginny.

Tom set the black diary on the floor. Black ink pooled around it, then rose into the shape of a teenage boy.

"You could've made your own body all along?" said Ginny, back in control.

"This is ink and shadow, hardly adequate," said Tom. "Go on."

Grimacing, Ginny took the long, thin, shining silver dagger from the table and raised her hand over the cauldron.

"Flesh of the servant, willingly given," she said. "You will revive your master."

She grabbed a tuft of hair, cut it off, and threw it in. The potion turned a blinding white.

"Good _,_ " said Tom.

"Is it ready?" asked Ginny.

"Not sure," said Tom, examining the tome. "These ancient instructions are horribly imprecise."

"Would you call this consistency a boullion or a bisques?" said Ginny. "Well, the proof is in the eating. Unless the pudding is poisonous, I suppose."

"I suppose," said Tom, walking into the cauldron and submerging.

This was her chance. She could kick the diary into the fire, if that would that accomplish anything. She could run away. Find Dumbledore, he'd know what to do. But she couldn't take her eyes off the diamond sparks jumping from the simmering surface. She had to see.

The sparks were suddenly extinguished and white steam billowed thickly from the cauldron. Ginny made out the dark outline of the boy, tall and thin, rising slowly from inside.

"It worked," said Ginny.

The boy stepped out of the cauldron, walked to her, and dissolved into ink.

 _No_ , Tom said darkly, back in control.

 _I don't understand_ , said Ginny. _What went wrong?_

 _Who knows?_ said Tom. _Was the father not enough of a father? But that we already knew. Was the foe enough of an enemy? Was the servant willing enough?_

 _I did everything you told me,_ said Ginny.

" _Evanesco_ ," said Tom, emptying the failed potion. _I don't want to talk_.

#

Tom stormed down to the Great Hall. Harry was in a foul mood at dinner, Ron and Hermione watching him nervously. This matched Tom's mood fine.

After dinner he crossed the dungbombed common room and climbed the spiral staircase to Ron's dormitory. When he left he passed Harry, but neither said a word. He went up to the owlry, and then to the hidden laboratory.

 _You don't have to try again so soon,_ said Ginny. _Get some rest._

 _I've tallied long enough as it is_ , said Tom, filling the cauldron and lighting the fire.

 _It's a complicated potion_ , said Ginny. _Snape himself might not get it right on the first try._

 _Don't patronize me,_ said Tom.

 _The color's different_ , said Ginny, studying the bubbling surface. _What did you change?_

 _A bit of this and that_ , said Tom, raising the black diary over the cauldron. Taking a deep breath, he ripped out a page and immediately cried out in pain.

 _What's wrong?_ cried Ginny.

Blinking back tears, Tom threw in the page. Colored smoke puffed from the cauldron.

Tom took an old sock from his pocket and pulled out Harry's sneakoscope, spinning and blinking wildly.

 _That sure wasn't in the recipe_ , said Ginny. _Should you really be using a defective one?_

 _It's not defective,_ said Tom, dipping it into the potion. _It doesn't take a sneakoscope to know no one is trustworthy._

When he pulled it out it was completely still, with an eerie green glow.

 _Now you broke it_ , said Ginny.

 _On the contrary_ , said Tom, laying it on its side and spinning it like a bottle. _Now it is actually useful._

 _Tell me what's going on,_ said Ginny. _Why aren't you brewing the regeneration potion?_

 _It's not often I am forced to admit that something is beyond my capabilities,_ said Tom.

 _You're too modest,_ said Ginny.

 _There is an old wizard on the Adriatic coast,_ said Tom. _Perhaps I should have sought him sooner, but that path is not without its risks._

 _Also, you know, the big fat ego thing_ , said Ginny.

 _We leave tomorrow_ , said Tom.

 _People will notice_ , said Ginny.

 _I have informed your parents that you will spend Christmas at Hogwarts with Ron,_ said Tom. _I'll tell Ron that we'll leave with Percy and the twins. That will buy us enough time._

 _How are we getting there?_ asked Ginny.

 _We can't risk the floo network_ , said Tom. _We don't have a portkey, and I don't know the destination well enough to apparate._

 _So we're stuck_ , said Ginny.

 _We will use Muggle transportation_ , Tom said disgustedly. _At least until we leave the range of the Ministry's underage Trace._

 _Dad would love this_ , Ginny said wistfully. _There's something I need to get for the trip._

 _We travel light_ , said Tom.

 _It'll be practically weightless_ , said Ginny. _But If you don't know the destination, how will we find it?_

The sneakoscope stopped spinning, pointing vaguely southeast.


	8. Muggle Transportation

**8\. Muggle Transportation**

Tom changed out of his school robes and watched from the train window as Percy and the twins met their parents at the station. When they left, he took his backpack and followed.

 _Did the jumper have to be pink?_ said Tom, walking into the brick wall exit of platform nine and three-quarters.

 _We can find a nice green dress to go with it_ , said Ginny, watching the Muggles rushing through King's Cross. _It's like walking into a different world._

 _One I vowed to leave behind,_ muttered Tom. _Much has changed in fifty years._

 _How do we get on Muggle transportation?_ asked Ginny. _Dad's always going on about those things that fly without magic… zeppelins?_

 _They don't have them anymore_ , said Tom. _First we need money._

 _I only have a few knuts_ , said Ginny.

 _That'll do_ , said Tom, fishing them out. He placed them in the violin case of a blind musician and took a twenty.

 _We're robbing the blind now?_ said Ginny.

" _Geminio_ ," whispered Tom, throwing the twenty in the backpack. The note multiplied, filling the space with purple paper portraits of the Muggle Queen.

 _What about the Trace?_ said Ginny.

 _There's enough students around they can't be sure who did it,_ said Tom.

 _Won't the duplicates turn to mush?_ said Ginny.

 _They'll last less than the original, but long enough for our purposes,_ said Tom. _Now we can get tickets_. _Maybe even a green dress._

 _Aren't you forgetting something?_ said Ginny.

Tom sighed and dropped two twenties back in the violin case.

They took the tube to Cannon Street and the train to Dover.

" _Anything off the cart, dears?"_ asked a smiling, dimpled woman.

 _Oh get some Chocolate Frogs!_ said Ginny.

 _Don't have 'em_ , said Tom.

 _Not even Every Flavor Beans_? said Ginny.

 _They have Mars Bars_ , said Tom. _But they're not really from Mars._

 _Never mind_ , sighed Ginny.

#

Night had fallen by the time they arrived in Dover. They walked from the station to the snowy grounds of the castle overlooking the Channel.

 _Don't suppose you have a Muggle passport_? said Tom, watching the ferry lights in port.

 _Didn't need one for Egypt_ , said Ginny.

 _We'll have to risk an_ imperius _at the port_ , said Tom. _Though that'll give them a good idea of where we're headed._

 _Easy on the unforgivables, there_ , said Ginny. _Check the side pocket on the backpack._

Tom picked up the tiny broom. _If we_ reducio _to fit on it, we'll get eaten by a bird._

 _Guess we'll have to_ engorgio _it back to normal, then,_ said Ginny. _C'mon, there's no finer way of getting from point A to B._

 _Or to the bottom of the sea,_ said Tom.

 _No one can be that bad,_ said Ginny.

 _Fine_ , said Tom placing it on the ground and pointing his wand. " _Engor.._."

"Witch!" someone cried behind them.

Tom spun around, wand raised, a curse on his lips. There was nobody there.

"Surely that broom can't handle your weight?" said the same voice.

Tom turned back. The pearly white, semi-transparent speaker carried his bearded head under his arm.

"Great, a ghost," said Tom.

"Not just any ghost," said the head while the body bowed. "William de la Pole, First Duke of Suffolk. At your service."

"Fantastic," said Tom, pointing at the broom again. "Kindly bugger off."

"I beg you, milady," said the Duke, floating into the way. "Help me end my five hundred years of torment."

"Alas, I am engaged in a personal quest at the moment," said Tom. "I am not accepting side quests. Have you considered joining the Headless Hunt? They seem to be enjoying their torment."

"Please, milady!" wailed the Duke.

 _Maybe we should help_ , said Ginny. _It would be easier than having him haunt us all the away over the Channel. It would make flying a broom a nightmare._

"Fine," said Tom. "Be quick about it."

"You are my knight of Camelot!" said the Duke. "I was certain your better angels would prevail. It is all the fault of Duke Humphrey, Constable of Dover, you see."

"The short version," said Tom.

"Yes, well," said the Duke. "After his wife died he married his mistress. She consulted astrologers, and they foresaw that the King would suffer a life-threatening illness. When the King found out they were convicted for necromancy. One astrologer died during questioning, the other was hanged, and the witch was burned at Smithfield Market."

 _That's horrible_ , said Ginny.

"Duke Humphrey later lost favor, was arrested for treason and died of a stroke," the Duke continued. "But the people of Dover loved their Duke, and thought I had him poisoned! When the war in France went poorly, I was blamed and sentenced to exile on the Continent. As my ship was crossing the Channel, however, it was boarded by vengeful commoners. My headless body was dumped on the beach, and my head buried in St. Peter's. Please, milady, help me retrieve it."

"Let me get this straight," said Tom. "Your King murdered three of my people, and you expect me to help?"

"My apologies, milady," said the Duke, prostrating himself. "Those were ignorant times."

 _This was before the Statute of Secrecy_ , said Ginny. _Wizards and Muggles did horrible things to each other._

"Fine," said Tom. "Lead the way."

#

The Duke floated down the hill into town and hovered over a sign reading Church St.

"I don't see the church," said Tom.

"Ah, about that," said the Duke. "In 1590 the Queen sold the church to pay for harbor repairs. My head's current resting place…"

"Is a coffee shop," said Tom, looking at the charming three-story white house.

 _Green window sills,_ said Ginny. _You'll like that._

"Accio _Duke's head,"_ Tom said unenthusiastically.

Nothing happened.

"Well, we tried," said Tom.

"Surely there must be more we can try?" the Duke said anxiously.

 _C'mon, put a little effort into it_ , said Ginny.

" _Alohomora_ ," Tom sighed.

The front door clicked open.

Tom walked inside and down to the basement. "Can you pinpoint the location?"

"Of course," said the Duke, diving underground and surfacing shortly after. "Right under here."

" _Defodio_ ," said Tom, removing a chunk of rock from where the Duke stood. He repeated the spell, digging deeper into the stone until he hit a chalk casket, which he shattered with _diffindo_.

" _Accio_ Duke's head," Tom repeated.

A white skull rose from the broken casket and flew to his hand.

 _Yuck,_ said Ginny.

"Oh thank you!" cried the Duke. "I had given up hope!"

"Where do you want it?" said Tom.

"Oh, anywhere in the Channel is fine," said the Duke. "Just as long as it's outside that horrid box!"

" _Wingardium leviosa,_ " said Tom, moving the rocks back into the hole. He fixed the floor with _reparo_ and relocked the front door with _colloportus_.

"Now if you don't mind," said Tom, stuffing the skull into the backpack, "we just committed a dozen violations of the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery and need to leave immediately."

He threw the miniature broom on the sidewalk. " _Engorgio._ " The broom popped back to regular size.

"Thank you, milady," said the Duke, floating away. "I am forever in your debt."

Tom stuck out his right hand over the broom. "Up."

The broom stayed where it was.

"Up," Tom growled, "or I'm chopping you for firewood."

The broom flew into his hand.

 _Ever heard of catching more flies with honey than vinegar?_ said Ginny.

 _Honey doesn't put the fear of death into them_ , said Tom, mounting the broom and kicking off.

He hovered uncertainly a few feet, tripped on a bench and splattered onto the floor.

 _Your broom is defective_ , said Tom.

 _The broom is fine_ , said Ginny, confused. _Do you… not know how to fly?_

 _Of course I do_ , said Tom. _I was a prefect…_

 _A model student, yeah,_ said Ginny. _Look, the Improper Use police are probably on their way. Move over, I'll drive._

 _As if I'd fall for that_ , sad Tom.

 _What other choice do you have?_ said Ginny. _If I try to run for it, you can always take back control._

 _Fine,_ said Tom.

Ginny rose and stuck her hand over the broom. "Up!"

The broom responded instantly.

 _Honey and vinegar_ , said Ginny.

 _Just drive,_ said Tom.

Ginny shot off hollering into the night sky, looping wildly. She wasn't truly free, but flying came pretty damn close.

 _Without killing us, if possible,_ muttered Tom.

Ginny didn't slow down.


	9. The Continent

**9\. The Continent**

 _Are we on course?_ said Tom.

 _How should I know?_ said Ginny, taking another dive. _Everything's dark down there._

 _You're not checking the stars?_ said Tom.

 _Um, there's a star,_ said Ginny, pointing.

 _That's Jupiter_ , said Tom.

 _How about that one_?

 _That's a plane,_ said Tom. _We're taking second year Astronomy!_

 _Guess I wasn't paying much attention,_ said Ginny.

 _Fine,_ said Tom. _Just hold steady and look up._

Ginny complied.

 _Looks roughly southeast_ , said Tom.

 _We're almost there_ , said Ginny.

 _Now you know stars?_ said Tom.

 _Nope, city lights up ahead,_ said Ginny.

They landed on a wide, unlit lawn.

 _We could keep flying to Paris_ , said Ginny.

 _No,_ said Tom. _My butt's freezing._

 _You don't have a butt_ , said Ginny.

 _Good point_ , said Tom, retaking control. " _Reductio_." He put away the miniature broom.

 _What about the Trace?_ said Ginny.

 _We're over the Channel,_ said Tom. _Should be enough. "Lumos."_

They were surrounded by tombstones.

 _Great,_ said Tom.

 _I thought you enjoyed cemeteries_ , said Ginny.

 _I do,_ said Tom.

"A visitor!" said an eerie voice.

 _It's the residents I can't stand,_ said Tom.

"Bone soo-are," the pearly young soldier said in broken French.

"You're British?" said Tom.

"As British as jellied eels," said the ghost. "Came over in the War."

 _Eww,_ said Ginny.

"Which one?" said Tom.

"1914, the one to end all wars," said the ghost.

 _You remember the war?_ asked Ginny.

 _I'm not that ancient_ , said Tom, walking on.

"Wait, what news from home?" asked the ghost.

"There were more wars," said Tom.

"I saw," the ghost said glumly.

"I can't help you get home or anything," said Tom. "I'm going the other way."

"What would I want to go back for?" said the ghost. "My Ma always dreamed of having a house in France. Now I have one with a view of the sea. Where you going?"

"Anywhere with a bed," said Tom.

"Just keep going down the street," said the ghost, pointing. "Hostel on your right, can't miss it."

Tom nodded.

They found the ghost's recommended hostel.

" _Bon soir_ ," the night manager said sleepily.

"I would… voolay…" stammered Tom. _Screw it._ He pointed the wand at his throat. " _Poliglossos._ "

" _Pardon_ ," Tom said fluently. "I would like a room for the night".

"You here with your parents?" asked the manager.

 _Never alone,_ groaned Ginny.

"Visiting with my mom, she'll be here soon," said Tom. "Do you accept pounds?"

"Sure," said the manager, handing him a form to fill. "You have your passport?"

" _Confondo_ ," said Tom, showing her a blank page.

"That's fine," said the manager, handing him a key. "You're in room 13."

#

In the morning they exchanged their money for francs, had fried mussels for breakfast, and took the train to Paris.

 _I've never been to Paris_ , Ginny said as they pulled into Gare du Nord. _Can we go sightseeing?_

 _I've filled my quota of decapitated aristocratic ghosts,_ said Tom.

 _C'mon, we have time before the next train_ , said Ginny. _Just the Tower._

 _Fine,_ said Tom. _Just the Tower._

They took the metro to Champ-de-Mars. Even in winter, they were surrounded by tourists. A suspiciously short queue time later, they were eating a nutella crepe on the glass elevator to the top. As they approached the railing, a tall, willowy blonde girl stood enjoying the morning chill, a faint silvery glow about her.

 _That's the prettiest girl I've ever seen_ , said Ginny.

 _I guess,_ said Tom.

"Fleur!" someone called.

"Coming, _maman_!" said the girl, pulling up her hood and running off.

 _Do you fancy boys?_ asked Ginny.

 _I fancy power,_ said Tom.

#

Tom returned to the station and the train rolled East. They had tarte flambée for lunch in Strasbourg, spaetzle noodles for dinner in Munich, kaiserschmarrn pancakes for breakfast in Vienna, and pork paprikás for lunch in Budapest.

 _Still think we should've swung by Prague to pick up your golem_ , Ginny said as they walked back to Keleti station.

Tom stopped, scanning the crowd.

 _What's the matter?_ asked Ginny.

Muggles parted around them, hugging their coats under the overcast sky. A homeless man played a _cobza_ lute on the corner.

 _Thought I saw someone_ , said Tom. _Probably nothing._

 _Who would you know in Budapest?_ said Ginny.

 _Like I said,_ said Tom, moving on, _probably nothing._

One block later he jumped into an alley. " _Nesqaqqari_." The pink coat now matched the brick wall behind him.

 _What the…_ said Ginny.

A plain-faced teenage girl walked past and Tom followed.

 _You can't know this girl_ , said Ginny. _You've been in that diary for like a hundred years._

 _Fifty_ , said Tom.

 _She's hardly twenty,_ said Ginny.

At the following block the girl walked into Kerepesi cemetery without looking back.

 _Yey, more cemeteries_ , said Ginny.

Tom followed her past gaudy mausoleums and weeping angels. At a deserted arcade she stopped and turned around.

"Hello, Tom," she said, opening her arms. She looked him in the eye, even though his coat and face were the color of gravestones and dirt. "I came back for you."

"That's impossible," said Tom, taking a step forward.

 _What's going on?_ said Ginny.

Tom didn't reply. He took another step.

 _Whatever this is, snap out of it, Tom_ , said Ginny.

"Now we'll always be together," said the girl, embracing him. She smiled with sharp, wolf-like fangs.

 _Tom, that's my body she's about to eat,_ cried Ginny. _Tom!_

A rooster crowed very oddly.

Startled, the girl released him. "You," she growled in Hungarian.

"Just me," said the homeless man from the corner, repeating his very poor impression of a rooster.

"You mock," said the girl, advancing towards him. "But you have no sun, no real rooster. Two _táltos_ in one day - it has been long since I've had such a feast."

"Yeah, shame about the weather," said the man, watching the clouds as if he'd been planning a picnic. "Good thing I'm a smoker." He picked up a birch branch and ran his lighter under it. The damp stick hardly smoked, but the girl gagged and pulled back.

"We can do this all day," said the man, waving the branch. "I have nowhere I need to be. How about you?"

The girl looked longingly at Tom. Hissing, she shot into the air as a large dark bird and flew away.

"You alright, girl?" asked the man, helping Tom to his feet.

"What was that?" asked Tom, thankful for the translation spell.

"A _lidérc_ ," the man said casually. "Nasty creatures. Take the shape of a lost loved one."

 _Who was she?_ asked Ginny.

 _Someone I never met_ , said Tom _._ "Somewhat like a boggart, then," he said aloud.

"Yes," said the man. "But it is much harder to ridicule someone you love than something you fear. It is like you say in English, about honey and vinegar."

 _Told you_ , said Ginny.

"You know I'm speaking English?" said Tom.

"My kind can sometimes glimpse truth," said the man.

"Your kind," said Tom. "You mean wizards?"

The man burst out laughing. "No, I am no _garabonciás_ , no book-wizard. I did not go to Durmstrang to wave a wand like a fairy. When someone says _expelliarmus_ , what do you do then?"

Tom's hand moved protectively to the wand at his waist.

The man raised his hands in surrender. "I tease, I tease. I have met many fine wizards and witches, but I am not one of you. I am Balasz, I am a _táltos_. I was born with a mark," he removed the glove on his right hand and flexed all six fingers, "and a mission. Today, my mission was to help you."

Balasz removed a flask from his coat, took a swig, and handed it to Tom. " _Pálinka_ , apricot brandy, good against dark creatures and Monday mornings."

 _You are not putting that flask on my mouth_ , said Ginny.

"No thanks," said Tom.

"I forget you are a child," said Balasz, raising Tom's chin and looking into his eyes, the extra pinky tapping distractingly. "Or are you? You seem a bit crowded in there."

 _He can see me?_ said Ginny.

Tom pulled back warily.

"Peace, war-mage," said Balasz. "I do not think it is my mission to exorcise your demons."

They walked back to the cemetery entrance.

"Can I offer you a ride?" said Balasz, pointing to a battered soviet-era Lada on the street.

 _It would be safer to ride that lee-derk creature_ , said Ginny.

"It may not be Göncöl's star chariot," Balasz said as if he had heard. "But it gets you there. Most of the time."

"Thanks, I'll walk," said Tom.

"Farewell, young _garabonciás_ ," Balasz said cheerily. "May you find your mission in life."

#

The train arrived in Belgrade late at night. The streets were deserted.

"Is the Skopje train delayed?" Tom asked the station manager.

"Problem on the track," huffed the manager. "Two days at least."

"Two days?" said Tom. "Is there no other way?"

"You could go 'round Sofia if you're in such a hurry," said the manager, shrugging.

 _Great,_ said Tom.

 _We might as well visit Charlie in Romania,_ said Ginny. _It's right next door._

 _We'll go by Sofia,_ said Tom.

 _Something feels off_ , said Ginny.

 _Death_ , said Tom, biting angrily into a mushroom _burek_. _There is war to the West._

They took the night train to Sofia and had breakfast at Vitosha Boulevard.

 _The Bulgarian team is really good,_ said Ginny. _They're one of the favorites to win the Cup next year._

 _What sport is this again?_ said Tom, chewing a cheese _banitsa_.

 _Quidditch!_ cried Ginny.

 _Right,_ said Tom.

 _They train at the National Stadium,_ said Ginny, _which is in the mountains just outside town. I know we have time before the next train_ , _so I was thinking…_

 _You want to watch them practice,_ said Tom. _Okay._

 _Really?_ said Ginny. _No crying or complaining?_

 _Do you want to go or not?_ said Tom.

 _You'll love it,_ said Ginny. _Maybe your mission in life is quidditch._

 _I highly doubt that_ , said Tom.

Tom took the 9TM bus to the last stop and started hiking up the mountain. _I'm cold, tired and sore_. _Are we there yet?_

 _This'll be much easier by broom_ , said Ginny.

 _Fine,_ _just get it over with_ , said Tom, switching over control.

 _You're oddly cooperative today,_ said Ginny.

 _If you'd rather go back…_ said Tom.

 _Nope, this is fine,_ said Ginny.

 _This forest is huge,_ said Tom. _How are we going to find it? How do they keep Muggles from finding it?_

" _Revelio_ ," said Ginny, raising her wand.

A huge scarlet arrow reading _Stadium 1km_ lit up in the air.

 _How do you know all this?_ said Tom.

 _Seeker Weekly,_ said Ginny. _My brothers have a subscription._ She returned the broom to regular size. _What's that camouflage spell again? Nesqaqqari?_

 _No, it's nesqaqqari_ , said Tom

 _That's what I said,_ said Ginny.

 _Just go,_ said Tom, _if they see us…_

Ginny shot into the air before he could finish. The glowing arrows led them to gothic stone towers in the middle of the snowy forest. They joined the scattering of fans draped in red, white and green.

 _That's them in scarlet,_ said Ginny, pointing out the players zooming about the pitch _. Oh look! That's Krum, the Seeker. He's still in school but they let him play in the National team. He's that good._

 _That's nice,_ said Tom.

 _You didn't hear I word I said, did you?_ said Ginny.


	10. The Old Wizard

**10\. The Old Wizard**

Tom took the train into the West. They had _tavce gravce_ beans for lunch in Skopje and _gjelle_ stew for dinner in Tirana.

 _We're running out of land_ , said Ginny. _Unless this wizard lives in Atlantis._

Tom removed the sneakoscope from the backpack and spun it on the table. The waiter seemed concerned, but didn't intervene. The top came to a stop pointing East.

 _Don't tell me he's in Skopje now_ , said Ginny.

 _Closer,_ said Tom. _We'll try that mountain outside the city._

 _Tonight?_ said Ginny.

 _Might as well,_ said Tom.

They took the bus to the Dajti Ekspres station and caught the last cable car up. At the mountain station Tom spun the sneakoscope and walked into the forest.

 _We could just fly there_ , said Ginny.

 _This is safer_ , said Tom.

 _You think he'll attack us?_ said Ginny.

 _Possibly_ , said Tom. _What was that?_

A woman's singing travelled through the trees.

 _That's not creepy at all_ , said Ginny. _Tell me we're not going that way._

Tom checked the sneakoscope. _We're going that way._

 _Peachy_ , said Ginny.

They followed the singing to a babbling brook. A young woman with long silver hair was bathing in the moonlight.

 _Your wizard's more… feminine than I imagined_ , said Ginny. _She's even prettier than that girl in Paris._

 _That's not him_ , said Tom. _I don't think it's even human._

The woman suddenly looked up and started walking towards them.

 _Do something_ , said Ginny.

 _I can't,_ said Tom, struggling. _Some kind of petrification effect._

The woman studied Tom, water glistening on her skin. "You will have to do."

"Who are you?" said Tom.

"I am Dajti," said the woman, "the _zana_ of this mountain."

"If we have trespassed…" said Tom.

"Shush," said Dajti. "In the old days a dozen _drangue_ warriors would have flown to answer my call, fighting for the honor of being my champion. Now all I have is a little witchling. Perhaps my beauty is not what it was..."

 _Tell her she's still pretty_ , said Ginny.

"Your trees are very… barky," said Tom.

 _You suck at this_ , said Ginny.

"Thank you," said Dajti. "A _kulshedra_ has long lived in harmony in one of my caves, only eating the occasional peasant."

Just _the occasional peasant?_ said Ginny.

"Recently, however, it has become increasingly rabid, rampaging through my woods," said Dajti.

"That sounds inconvenient," said Tom. "But I'm not sure what I can…"

"You will slay it for me," said Dajti.

"Yeah, about the slaying part..." said Tom.

"You have your magic," said Dajti. "You need only be pure of heart. Your alternative is to remain trapped in my forest. Forever."

"Then I accept your quest, my lady," said Tom.

"Wise choice," said Dajti, collecting dirt from the ground and rubbing it between her fingers. " _Syt i dalçin syt i plaçin,_ " she whispered, touching the dirt to Tom's eyes, mouth, heart and stomach. "The _kulshedra's_ lair is further up the mountain," said Dajti, fading into the moonlight.

Tom felt his bonds dissolve.

 _Here's an idea,_ said Ginny. _First_ _we make you a new body, then you can go slaying._

Tom started walking.

#

The cave was hard to miss, small animal bones littering the surrounding area.

 _You have any idea what these things look like?_ asked Ginny.

 _No,_ said Tom, raising his wand. " _Protego_."

 _I don't really feel like going in there,_ said Ginny.

" _Incendio_ ," said Tom, launching a fireball into the cave.

It disappeared in the dark.

 _No one's home,_ said Ginny. _Let's try again tomorrow. Or never._

The cave rumbled and a jet of flame erupted from the entrance.

 _Someone's home_ , said Tom.

The monster slithered out of the cave and stretched its leathery wings, green scales glistening under the moon.

 _It's a dragon_ , said Ginny in disbelief. _We're fighting a dragon_.

" _Avada kedavra,_ " Tom snapped, firing a green bolt at the beast's chest.

The dragon staggered, then let out a deafening roar.

 _Spell resistant,_ muttered Tom, digging into the backpack.

 _If a killing curse couldn't do it, I'm not sure my Weasley jumper will_ , said Ginny.

 _Found it,_ said Tom. " _Defodio_." Dirt erupted from the ground onto the dragon's face. Tom ran towards it.

 _Shouldn't you be going the other way?_ said Ginny.

 _Not if you want to find out if you're pure of heart_ , said Tom, diving under the muscular front legs.

The dragon reared up spouting flame, one of its claws slicing through magic, fabric and flesh. Tom cried out in pain.

 _My arm!_ cried Ginny.

 _Got'em right where I want'em,_ Tom grunted, dropping the wand.

 _You mean trampling my body? said Ginny._

 _Yes,_ said Tom, clutching a dagger-like object with both hands.

 _How is that better than a wand? asked Ginny._

 _Basilisk fang,_ smiled Tom, stabbing the giant foot.

Shrieking painfully, the dragon collapsed around them.

#

 _Are you crazy?_ said Ginny. _You could have crushed us!_

 _It was that or getting burned or eaten,_ said Tom, dragging himself away from the mass of scales. " _Vulnera sanentur_."

The injured arm still looked a mess, but the bleeding stopped. Tom took the sneakoscope from the backpack and spun it.

 _You're not serious_ , said Ginny.

 _I've come this far,_ said Tom.

The sneakoscope stopped, pointing at the dragon carcass. Black smoke was rising from its nostrils and collecting in an ominous cloud.

"Insolent child!" hissed a high-pitched voice. "Months invested in bending this mindless beast to my will, all wasted. I will have to settle for something smaller."

The dark cloud oozed menacingly closer.

Tom pushed himself to his feet. "This body is taken, Voldemort."

 _Voldemort?_ cried Ginny.

"Ah." The cloud paused. "You come to follow Quirrel's footsteps? Become the witch who found the Dark Lord?"

"Not exactly," said Tom, digging into the backpack. He pulled out the black diary.

"My diary," said Voldemort.

" _Our_ diary," said Tom

 _Our?_ said Ginny. _But… Why would you hide this?_

 _The pieces were all there,_ said Tom. _You didn't want to put them together._

 _You're a monster,_ said Ginny.

Voldemort cackled. "That useless Malfoy finally did something right for a change."

"I want my real body," said Tom, pulling out _Moste Potente Potions_. "I brewed a regeneration potion, but there's something wrong with the recipe."

"Or with the potion-maker," said Voldemort, hovering closer.

"Unlikely," Tom said dryly.

"Blood of the enemy," said Voldemort. "Who?"

"Malfoy's boy," said Tom. "Draco."

"Idiot!" thundered the cloud. "What is that boy to me? Nothing! If I am to rise again, more powerful than before, it must be Harry Potter! Only then will his mother's lingering protection reside in my veins."

"That can be arranged," growled Tom. "Do not call me _idiot_ again."

"Flesh of the servant," said Voldemort. "Who?"

"This girl," said Tom. "A Weasley."

"Blood traitors," said Voldemort. "She did this willingly?"

"Yes," said Tom.

"I remember being charming at your age," said Voldemort. "When I grew stronger I dispensed with the niceties. What flesh?"

"A lock of hair," said Tom.

"A lock of…" Voldemort scoffed. "This is not some half-knut glamour to help you get a boyfriend! This is ancient blood magic, boy! It demands at least one hand, possibly an eye."

"She will not be as willing again," said Tom.

"You control her body without _imperius_ ," said Voldemort. "That should suffice. For my plan we will need her life."

"What plan?" said Tom.

"As you see, I am also currently incorporeal," said Voldemort. "I will re-fuse your fragment to my soul in my new body."

"Her life?" said Tom.

"Are you getting soft on me, _Tom?_ " spat Voldemort.

"Don't call me Tom," he replied. "I am Lord Voldemort!"

"Are you, now?" said Voldemort. "You have no idea what I have sacrificed. I have pushed the boundaries of magic further than they have ever been pushed!"

"And for all your achievements, you were defeated by a child," said Tom. "Your obsession with this Potter boy will destroy you."

"It is prophecy!" cried Voldemort. " _The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies_. Dumbledore knows it."

"Or is he playing you?" said Tom. "When I awoke last year, I was certain the world would be under our command. Imagine my shock when I learned you were defeated, less than spirit, less than the meanest ghost. I came to you for power, but you have none to give. Continue your vendetta with the Potter kid. I have a world to conquer."

"Do not turn your back on me, boy!" cried Voldemort. "You dare call me weak? It is that Weasley girl that has made you weak! _Avada kadavra!_ "

A green bolt blasted from the cloud into Tom's back, sending him sprawling into the ground.

"Even as I am, with no body, no wand," said Voldemort, the cloud hovering closer, "I have powers you can only dream of."

Tom coughed, cringing in the dirt.

"You are more resilient than I expected," said Voldemort.

"Nah," said Tom. "You're just not as good as you think."

" _Avada…_ " said Voldemort.

Crack!

Tom disapparated.


	11. Vinegar & Honey

**11\. Vinegar & Honey**

Tom stumbled onto the deserted street in Hogsmeade.

 _Ginny, help,_ he groaned, searching backpack. _We need to get to the infirmary._

 _You turned away from him,_ said Ginny.

 _He's an old fraud,_ said Tom.

 _What does this mean?_ Said Ginny.

 _I don't know,_ said Tom, throwing the broom on the cobblestones. _But if you don't fly, we both die._

 _I can't,_ Ginny said weakly. _I'm fading…_

The temperature dropped and Tom looked up. They were surrounded by a dozen dementors, hovering slowly towards them.

 _You're afraid_ , whispered Ginny.

 _No need to rub it in,_ said Tom.

 _I thought they didn't affect you_ , said Ginny.

 _Yeah, well,_ said Tom.

 _Can't you stun them or something?_ said Ginny.

 _There is one spell,_ said Tom, _but I can't work it._

 _I thought you were a prefect…_ said Ginny.

 _Yeah, a model student,_ said Tom. _But it requires a happy memory._

 _Surely you can think of_ one _happy memory? said Ginny._

 _When the dark wizard Raczidian tried to cast it without a pure heart, he was eaten by maggots,_ said Tom.

 _We'll take our chances,_ said Ginny.

Tom concentrated.

 _No pressure_ , said Ginny.

The dementors were closing in.

 _Whenever you're… said Ginny._

"Expecto patronum!" cried Tom, shooting a silver horse onto the street. The horse kicked and neighed, scattering the dementors.

 _I knew you could do it,_ said Ginny. _What was the memory?_

Tom paused. _A nutella crepe._

Ginny laughed.

 _Great, now you fly the broom,_ said Tom.

Ginny didn't respond.

 _Ginny?_ said Tom _. Hang in there._ "Engorgio."

Tom mounted the broom and shot erratically into the night, knocking off roof shingles.

#

Tom crashed into a balcony and ran down empty hallways to the hospital wing.

"Madam Pomfrey!" he cried, but no one answered.

He lay down on the nearest bed and threw the black diary on the floor. An inky blob rose from the diary and took the shape of Tom.

"Ginny," said Tom, shaking her on the bed.

Ginny didn't reply. Her breathing was shallow.

"Stay here," said Tom. "I'll go get Dumbledore, he'll know what to do."

"I'm here, Tom," said Dumbledore, rising from an armchair in the corner.

"You have to save her," said Tom.

"Slow down," said Dumbledore, studying her. "Tell me what happened."

"It's kind of a long story," said Tom.

"Start at the end," said Dumbledore.

"Voldemort cast the killing curse on me - her - us," said Tom. "But it didn't work properly. He doesn't even have a body!"

"I was afraid something like this would happen," said Dumbledore. "Don't look at me like that. If I were truly clairvoyant, we wouldn't be in this pickle, would we?"

"I guess," said Tom.

"I'm impressed Voldemort was able to manage such a complex curse without a body," said Dumbledore. "You became very powerful indeed, Tom. Is it all you dreamed?"

"I suppose," said Tom.

"I am no less impressed you were able to survive it," said Dumbledore. "Any suggestions?"

"We met a mountain fairy," said Tom. "She cast some spell on us in exchange for slaying a dragon. _Syt i dalçin_ or something."

"Ah, the zana," said Dumbledore. "Wonderful creatures. They tend to favor the pure of heart, you know. You say you went dragon slaying?"

"It turned out the dragon was rampaging because it was possessed," said Tom. "Not sure it was such a just quest after all."

"The zana's spell delayed the effects," said Dumbledore. "But even their magic cannot prevent the killing curse. There is nothing I can do."

"What?" said Tom. "You're the greatest wizard in the world! What good is all that power if you can't save a single little girl?"

Dumbledore's sad blue eyes met his. "There isn't a single day I don't ask myself that very question, Tom."

"I refuse to believe it," said Tom. "Voldemort may be broken, but at least he conquered death. Where is your power of love now, Dumbledore?"

"Conquering death was always your obsession, Tom, never mine," said Dumbledore. "There is no doubt in my mind that love will save this girl."

"What?" said Tom. "But you just said you couldn't… Ah. I see."

Tom laughed without mirth.

"You're too late, Dumbledore," said Tom. "I'm a monster. It took murder to enchant this diary. How could it ever be a fresh start? It was too late when you found me in the orphanage. You should have left me there."  
"Perhaps I hoped for a night like this," said Dumbledore.

"Well, then," said Tom, taking the basilisk fang from the backpack. "Goodbye, Professor. I wish things could have turned out differently."

"So do I, Tom," said Dumbledore.

Tom plunged the fang into the diary and collapsed into a pool of ink.

Ginny opened her eyes.


	12. A-N

**A/N**

A big thank you to all reviewers! :)

To answer some of the points:

\- icemaxprime: jump cutty in the beginning: guilty.

\- Guest:

1\. Not like most T/G stories: yep, let's avoid the creepy age difference.

2\. Needs more exposition/narrative, is more like a script: guilty.

3\. Tom is OOC: guilty. The story assumes diary-Tom could still be redeemed given other choices/circumstances, but he was probably already too far gone by then.

4\. Few interactions with Ron/Weasleys; Tom doesn't need Hermione's help: good points. I guess I just like Hermione better :)


End file.
